Breeding Better Dogs
Pronouns: He/Him
Hi, I’m Valentine!
I started working with dogs professionally in 2012 as a Dog Trainer and learned even more when I moved on to work in the veterinary field. I have seen firsthand, over thousands of dogs, the importance of good breeding practices and how invaluable it is for breeders to offer lifetime support for their puppies and their owners. I now work from home in an unrelated field for the benefit of being with my dogs 24/7.
I have always been interested in dog breeding, but my passion really took off when my beloved collie Darry sired his first litter in 2021. Years of studying Collie history and health led me to what I feel is my calling: ensuring the future of this incredible breed through outcrossing in order to introduce significantly more genetic diversity in my own line of Collies.
The Dreamdale Difference
Companionship First
Our breeding dogs are beloved companions who have proven themselves to be friendly, loving, and a joy to live with. Temperament is our first priority, and we make no exceptions. While every dog will require effort in training, socialization and bonding to grow into a well-behaved companion, Dreamdale pups are eager to learn and are excited to join their families wherever life takes them!
Transformational Breeding & Puppy Rearing
Dreamdale puppies are carefully raised in our home following Avidog’s Transformational Puppy Rearing – an early introduction to socialization and training to give every puppy the perfect head start.
Our breeding dogs are our beloved companions first and foremost. We follow Avidog’s Transformational Dog Breeding, ensuring they are in the best physical and mental health possible before, during and after breeding.
High Ethical Standards
Each litter at Dreamdale Companions is carefully planned, taking into account the temperament and physical health of the parents and seeking health clearances for hereditary diseases.
We adhere to the strict ethical standards outlined in the Companion Dog Project’s code of ethics, the Functional Dog Collaborative’s guiding statements, and are a recognized Good Dog Good Breeder.
4-Year Health Guarantee
Our breeding dogs are tested according to recommended health clearances, and we are proud to offer a 4-Year guarantee against congenital health conditions for all of our puppies.
Genetic Diversity
Despite our best efforts to health test our breeding dogs, there are hundreds of deleterious genes that are unknown, and it is impossible to select against all of them. The smaller and more inbred a population is, the higher the likelihood of these genes doubling up and expressing in the form of health problems.
Scientific literature is clear: Genetically diverse dogs live longer and healthier lives than inbred dogs. It is deeply unfortunate that nearly 150 years of breeding within a closed gene pool has resulted in purebred Collies having an incredibly high average genetic coefficient of inbreeding (COI) of 40%, which makes the average Collie significantly more inbred than even a parent/child offspring (25%). Despite there being thousands of Collies in the world, as of 2014, Collies have an estimated effective population size of only 39 individual dogs.
We have chosen to focus on crossbreeding our Collies with other breeds in order to significantly reduce the risk of health concerns and to help promote greater longevity. We use Embark’s pair prediction tool to ensure the lowest inbreeding coefficient possible when planning our litters.